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2014 – A Year in Books!

As you may know I love reading books. I also love keeping a reading journal so that at the end of every year I can look back and see how many books I read & the genres of books I enjoyed most.

I wanted to share with you guys my 2014 list to give you a little insight into the genres I like and what I thought of the books.

In 2014 I read 29 books, which may not seem a lot to some of you but may seem plenty to others. So here they are:

Murder Spree – Damon & Rowan Wilson.

This was my first book of 2014, and I appear to have gone through a phase of reading about true crime. I used to work in a forensic Lab and that really sparked my interest in true crime books and what drives a person to commit crime. This was a good book.

Predator – John McShane

This is another true crime book.

House of Fear – Various Authors

I am a huge fan of the Horror genre and this is a great compilation of haunted housem stories.

Evil Beyond Belief – Nathan Yates

True crime.

Beyond Evil – Nathan Yates

True Crime.

Mortuary Confidential – Kenneth McKenzie

I know so far this list is looking pretty morbid but I read this book and the next one because when I die I want to give my body to medical science and I’m intrigued by what happens to our bodies when we no longer need them.

Stiff – Mary Roach

This is another book by a mortician.

To Kill a Warlock – H.P. Mallory

This is a light-hearted story centered on a witch and her experiences with the paranormal.

Night stalker – John McShane

True Crime.

The Facebook killer pt2 – M. L Stewart

This is a really good thriller and is available on kindle relatively cheaply. The first installment was free and I instantly had to download the next two because it was so good.

Are you there vodka? It’s Chelsea – Chelsea Handler

This is a autobiography by the American Comedian and was a nice light hearted read and I really enjoyed it. Chelsea has such a dry sense of humour that it had me giggling in places and I couldn’t put it down.

The Facebook Killer pt3 – M. L Stewart

This is the final part of this thriller series.

The Dangerous book for Demon Slayers – Angie Fox

This is kind of chick lit but with a paranormal twist (the main character is a demon slayer) I really liked it and bought others in the series.

World War Z – I read this book after seeing the film and it was a great take on the zombie apocalypse Genre although as tends to be the norm, it was different from the film.

This House is Haunted – John Boyne.

This is a fantastic book that got me into the Victorian ghost story genre, well written and with a gripping plot, again I couldn’t put it down. A really great ghost story book.

The Silence of Ghosts – John Aycliffe

The previous book really got me into ghost stories so I downloaded this as soon as I finished the last one and again another great ghost story.

Grave Surprise – Charlaine Harris

From the author of the True Blood Novels this book is focused on a young woman who after an accident can now see and speak to the dead. It was so good I bought the next two books in the trilogy.

The Voices – F.R Tallis

Once again this is another great ghost story. A new couple, move into a house and strange happenings begin; the part when voices come over the baby monitor is pretty creepy.

The Possession – Peter James

This is a fantastic take on the classic possession plot. I couldn’t put it down once I’d started.

The Stake – Richard Laymon

Love. This. Writer.

I am yet to read anything by this author that isn’t well written, captivating and scary as hell!

A group of people end up in a ghost ton and find a staked vampire but do they dare remove the stake? Read this book to find out!!

The Locker – Richie Tankersley Cusick

For me this was a nostalgic choice, growing up, I was engrossed by the Point Horror series of books and this was one of my favourite authors so I decided to read one of their books and I now remember why I loved that series so much!

How to make love like a porn star – Jenna Jameson & Neil Strauss

This is not a how to book, it’s Jenna’s autobiography. It was interesting seeing how someone is drawn into the world of porn and the highs and lows that they experience. There’s also plenty gossip in there about celebrities she has slept with over the years lol!

No Way Out – MJ Ware

Another ghost story book, it had a great plot.

The Unquiet House – Alison Littlewood

This was another Haunted house novel. I really enjoyed it.

Guilty Pleasures – Laurell K. Hamilton

This is a re-read; I first read this book years ago. It is a book about a necromancer who raises the dead for a living and the cases she takes on.

The series is based around a Vampire/ Werewolf love triangle. This book was out way before twilight and is definitely more adult themed. The Sex scenes are pretty steamy!

There are soooooo many books in this series, but I’ll get through them eventually.

Confessions of a Shopaholic – Sophie Kinsella

I wanted to read this book after watching the film and though it’s different from the film I really liked it and bought the next few books in the series. Sophie Kinsella is a fantastic Author!

I sold my Soul On ebay – Hemant Mehta

This is a book on Christian religion from the point of view of an atheist. Hemant is an atheist who goes to church services and gives feedback to the church about their services. I found this book to be soooooo boring and it was a struggle to finish it.

Is everyone hanging out without me? – Mindy Kalin

This is written by The woman who Plays Kelly Kapur in the American version of the office and was really funny. I had no idea that Mindy wrote for the office but it really shows throughout, both hilarious and heart warming in equal measure. Her honesty is refreshing.

The woman in Black – Susan Hill

As I mentioned in my previous blog I love film The Woman in Black. Recently on our trip to London my Boyfriend surprised me with a trip to the theatre to see the play. It was amazing! I had no idea that a theatre production could be so atmospheric and scary. It was really good. While there, I bought a special edition of the book and had to read it right away. A fantastic book I give it 10/10!!

So that is my book list, as you can see I like my books with a dose of the dark side & a sprinkle of comedy.

I would just like to mention an app I have just got for my iPhone called Bookswing, it’s basically an electronic reading journal were you can add pictures and notes, time your reading session and record what page you are on and your thoughts on the book. It only costs £1.49 from the app store and I love it!

Have you read any of the above books? What was your favourite book of 2014?